Facts

Don Chepe's Cafe

A few years ago he took a struggling site on East Silver Springs Boulevard at 25th Avenue and turned it into his dream of an upper-end Italian house. His Mesa de Notte now is one of the premier dineries in town.

Along the way he won a handful of accolades, including the coveted People's Choice prize at 2012's Taste of Ocala.

And now he's turned his attention to the spot that briefly was Honeysuckle's Café, which closed suddenly over the summer. Before that it was the 17th Street Deli and something called Gennaro's. There were a handful of other attempts going back to when it was a Snappy Tomato pizza franchise.

A fortnight ago (that'd be two weeks), Moreno opened Don Chepe's Café in the space at 2506-A SE 17th St., where 17th turns into Maricamp Road.

"It's just a concept I've had in mind for a long time, and we finally decided to bring it to life," he said shortly after the opening.

It's all Latin-American cuisine, with items from Venezuela, Mexico, Colombia, Argentina and his native El Salvador. Among the specialties are the array of arepas, which are cornmeal flatbreads stuffed with cheese, shredded beef or pork, black beans and/or fried plantains.

There's also a list of beef, pork and chicken specialties, even some vegetarian options.

Everything here is handmade, Moreno said, even the Cuban bread. And Spanish is definitely spoken — as is English. His entire family helps out preparing the menu items.

Even the eatery's name has a connection to family.

"Chepe," Moreno said, "is a nickname for Jose" — a name he shared with his father, who passed away in February. "I named it in memory of him," he added. Now, Moreno didn't say if his father was an actual lord, as "don" is traditionally an honorific title of the Spanish aristocracy. But "Dad" is usually "Don" enough.

"His spirit is probably watching over us," Moreno added.

Not to be facetious, but he'd almost have to — if for no other reason than to be sure somebody's minding the store. After all, Don Chepe's is open 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week.

"The other night someone pulled in a just after 10," he said. "We were there, why not?" But it's a safe guess that Moreno and company would prefer this not become a habit.

Still, he puts in as much time as he can overseeing his new eatery, balancing his day between Don Chepe's and Mesa de Notte up the hill. But at least these two are only minutes apart — not like when Moreno had another restaurant in the Summer Glen development that was miles away. "They used to call me, 'We have a problem …' It'd take me 45 minutes to get there," he said.

Still, this kind of thing seems to be one of Moreno's off-the-menu specialties: taking on a troubled restaurant spot and making a go of it. Before Mesa de Notte, the building on the boulevard was the all-American Uptown Grill and Josie's and some other things going back to when it was called the Mock Rock Café in 2000.

Moreno originally came to Ocala from Miami at the invitation of Ken DePasquale to work at Carmichael's. Later, Moreno moved over to Bella Luna before opening a Carmichael's Café in the Ocala Palms development.

He later picked up the struggling Uptown Grill and turned it into a thriving breakfast-and-lunch spot. Two years ago, he shut it down for a few weeks to take Uptown uptown and make it into the tony Italian eatery that always was his dream.

Now he has another dream. "And so far," he said, "it's looking good, thank God."

<p>If anyone can make a go of the eatery spot at Southeast 25th Avenue and 17th Street, it's got to be Jose Moreno.</p><p>A few years ago he took a struggling site on East Silver Springs Boulevard at 25th Avenue and turned it into his dream of an upper-end Italian house. His Mesa de Notte now is one of the premier dineries in town.</p><p>Along the way he won a handful of accolades, including the coveted People's Choice prize at 2012's Taste of Ocala.</p><p>And now he's turned his attention to the spot that briefly was Honeysuckle's Café, which closed suddenly over the summer. Before that it was the 17th Street Deli and something called Gennaro's. There were a handful of other attempts going back to when it was a Snappy Tomato pizza franchise.</p><p>A fortnight ago (that'd be two weeks), Moreno opened Don Chepe's Café in the space at 2506-A SE 17th St., where 17th turns into Maricamp Road.</p><p>"It's just a concept I've had in mind for a long time, and we finally decided to bring it to life," he said shortly after the opening.</p><p>It's all Latin-American cuisine, with items from Venezuela, Mexico, Colombia, Argentina and his native El Salvador. Among the specialties are the array of arepas, which are cornmeal flatbreads stuffed with cheese, shredded beef or pork, black beans and/or fried plantains.</p><p>There's also a list of beef, pork and chicken specialties, even some vegetarian options.</p><p>Everything here is handmade, Moreno said, even the Cuban bread. And Spanish is definitely spoken — as is English. His entire family helps out preparing the menu items.</p><p>Even the eatery's name has a connection to family.</p><p>"Chepe," Moreno said, "is a nickname for Jose" — a name he shared with his father, who passed away in February. "I named it in memory of him," he added. Now, Moreno didn't say if his father was an actual lord, as "don" is traditionally an honorific title of the Spanish aristocracy. But "Dad" is usually "Don" enough.</p><p>"His spirit is probably watching over us," Moreno added.</p><p>Not to be facetious, but he'd almost have to — if for no other reason than to be sure somebody's minding the store. After all, Don Chepe's is open 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week.</p><p>"The other night someone pulled in a just after 10," he said. "We were there, why not?" But it's a safe guess that Moreno and company would prefer this not become a habit.</p><p>Still, he puts in as much time as he can overseeing his new eatery, balancing his day between Don Chepe's and Mesa de Notte up the hill. But at least these two are only minutes apart — not like when Moreno had another restaurant in the Summer Glen development that was miles away. "They used to call me, 'We have a problem …' It'd take me 45 minutes to get there," he said.</p><p>Still, this kind of thing seems to be one of Moreno's off-the-menu specialties: taking on a troubled restaurant spot and making a go of it. Before Mesa de Notte, the building on the boulevard was the all-American Uptown Grill and Josie's and some other things going back to when it was called the Mock Rock Café in 2000. </p><p>Moreno originally came to Ocala from Miami at the invitation of Ken DePasquale to work at Carmichael's. Later, Moreno moved over to Bella Luna before opening a Carmichael's Café in the Ocala Palms development.</p><p>He later picked up the struggling Uptown Grill and turned it into a thriving breakfast-and-lunch spot. Two years ago, he shut it down for a few weeks to take Uptown uptown and make it into the tony Italian eatery that always was his dream.</p><p>Now he has another dream. "And so far," he said, "it's looking good, thank God."</p><p><i>Rick Allen can be reached at rick.allen@starbanner.com or 867-4154.</i></p>